Into the Belly of the Beast
by Ineka
Summary: Gabriel Ashlock is alive and well-somehow-and out to wreak havok on Shalimar and the Mutant X team. (S/J in a friendship way. nothing else) (chapter 3 is up!! sorry for the wait)
1. Chapter 1

Adam sat quietly at his desk. He had a distraught look on his face that Emma scented as she walked by. She stopped and turned into the room. She didn't say anything, just looked at him. Adam looked up to see who it was and knowing that he can't hold anything from Emma he started to speak.  
  
"Ashlock's alive." He said only 2 words but they had so much meaning.  
  
Emma didn't say anything but her question was sprawled all over her face.  
  
"I don't know how. All I know is that he's alive and even more powerful then before because he's no longer mutating." He said it with such disappointment that Emma was aching with pain.  
  
"Have you told Shal, Brennan, and Jesse yet?" she asked although she already knew the answer.  
  
"No." It was a simple answer, which was fine. It was direct.  
  
"You have to. Shal needs to know this. She needs to be prepared. We all do." She said as if Adam didn't know this.  
  
" We don't even know what he wants yet. Maybe it had nothing to do with us." He knew he was being overly optimistic but it was worth a shot.  
  
Emma turned around and walked out of the room.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"To go tell them."  
  
Adam went after her. He didn't want to not be there when everyone found out. Emma walked over to the sofas and found Jesse and Brennan lounging about, board out of their minds.  
  
"Have you seen Shal? Adam needs to tell you something." Emma walked over and stood behind Jesse.  
  
"Uhhh, I think she's in her room. She went out last night and I didn't hear her come in." Brennan said curious about the news Adam had.  
  
"I saw her this morning. She looked pretty pooped. I'm just glad I'm not the one going to go get her." Jesse said it with his usual joking expression.  
  
Emma walked to Shalimar's room and knocked softly. She didn't get answer so she opened the door and went in.  
  
"Shal, Adam needs to tell us something. It's important so come on."  
  
"Ugh" she was sitting in a chair at the back of the room and holding her head. Emma could tell that she was hung over.  
  
She stood up slowly still holding her head and shuffled out of the room despising Adam for making her stand up. She walked over to the couches and slid into one of the big comfy lounge chairs. She got the looks of three slightly worried faces as she did so.  
  
"Okay Adam what do you need to tell us?" Jesse said turning away from Shalimar to look at Adam.  
  
Adam sighed and just decided because there was no easy way to say this he would just blurt it right out.  
  
"Ashlock's alive." This got everyone's attention.  
  
"What? But how?" Brennan acquired.  
  
"More importantly how are we going to stop him again?" Shalimar said sounding not at all surprised. She had been quiet up to this point.  
  
Adam shook his head. He had no idea on how to stop his just that they didn't stop him the first time, which wasn't good.  
  
Shalimar stood up and walked back into her room.  
  
"I'll go after her." Emma said as she stood up.  
  
Once Shalimar was back in her room she sat back down in her chair and wrapped herself in a blanket. She didn't look up when Emma entered the room.  
  
"Shove over." Emma went and sat down beside Shalimar.  
  
They sat in silence for a while, until Emma broke it.  
  
"He's back isn't he? Talking to you?  
  
Shalimar nodded.  
  
"Since about a week ago. Nothing big until last night. At first I woke up and he would be sitting there. He didn't say anything, just sat with a smile on the face. Then last night, he stood, watching me dance when I went out then when I left the club, he followed me and when I got hear he said the he wasn't mutating and he was going to get me back." 


	2. Chapter 2

"Okay, so we know he's back but how are we going to stop him again?" Jesse wondered. It was hard enough the first time and Eckhart would have come up with some sort of way to protect himself from what they used last time  
  
"Well first we need to fine his weakness." Adam told the group. Jesse looked over to Shalimar who was holding her head.   
"Shal, are you okay?" Jesse said in his worried voice.  
  
"Ya, just a small head ache" she said back " I'm going to get some pain killers, I'll be back in a minute.Keep going, fill me in when I get back"   
She stood up still holding her head, and began to walk to her room. But just as she got to the centre of the room she screamed holding her head and buckled in pain.   
"Shal?!" Jesse jumped up and ran toward the fallen Shalimar. The others followed just as fast.  
  
~MED LAB~  
  
Jesse, Emma and Brennan were all standing out side peering through a window curios about haw shalimar was doing. She looked asleep but it wasn't as relaxed. Sort of tense and afraid.  
  
Adam had been hovering over Shalimar for the last three hours running every imaginable test he could think of. Accourding to them, she was mearly sleeping. But any small child could tell that she wasn't.  
  
Adam need a break so he steped back walking out of the room towards the three anxious looks of his team mates.  
  
"She's Okay right? She's just sleeping right?" Jesse was the first one to speak  
  
" I don't know. It's not like anything I've ever seen before. I've ruled out a mutationor virus but I cant figule it out." Adam felt as though he had hailled Shalimar and eveyone could tell by the sound of his voice.  
  
"It's Ashlock." Emma said "Shal's been seeing him again and last night her threatened her."  
  
This got their attention. They were all shocked and appaled that Shalimar didn't say anything. But after they thought about it, she had been acting different latey. Staying out later, staying in her room more and sometimes they could hear her roaming around much before the sun came up.  
  
"Did she say what he said to her?" Jesse spoke first breaking the silence.  
  
"Just that he was going to get her back. That was last night." She said without looking up.  
  
"Okay Emma, will you connect with her abd see whats going on. That might give us some answers. If you don't want to just say no. I don't want to put you in any danger. If Ashlock could get shalimar then her could get you just as easy."  
  
Emma nodded. She knew the risks but didn't care. Shalimar needed help and she was willing to give some, what ever the cost. 


	3. Chapter 3

Jesse watch intensely as Emma walked up to Shalimar. He was confused by the debate that was going on in his head. On one side, he wanted Shalimar to be ok, but on the other, he didn't want Emma to be put her self in any unnecessary danger that could be threatening to her life. But not knowing what was going on with Shalimar was eating away at him, so he watched in silence.  
  
Emma, on the other hand, wasn't worried about herself at all. She just wanted to understand what was happening with Shalimar. She cautiously walked up her friend making gentle steps and movements as you do around some one who's asleep. She lightly placed her own hand on one of Shalimar's and was immediately bombarded with feelings of panic and fear before she felt her feet hit solid ground.  
  
The place where she was standing was on a stone floor in a dark, circular room. The only light was the musty glow about a dozen candles that were standing randomly placed in pools of wax. At first glance the room looked plain. The walls were grey, concrete slabs thrown up as if to keep someone in. But as Emma looked closer, she notices the intricate designs etched on them in gold and red. And the walls were not grey at all but a colour she was unable to comprehend. It was different at every angle you looked at it with. But all the same tone. The floor was no more rock as the walls grey either. It was soft and easy to stand on. Like no metal Emma had ever touched. This room was beautiful.  
  
As Emma gazed around once more, taking in even more spectacular sights, she noticed that Shalimar had stood up from where she was sitting and was starting to walk towards Emma. Her mind snapped back to the reason she was here: to help her friend.  
  
"Emma, how did you get here?"  
  
"You're in the med lab. I connected with you. Where are we?"  
  
"I don't know. But its beautiful isn't it?"  
  
"Ya, amazing. It's sort of hypnotizing; I can't keep my eyes off it."  
  
There was a pause as the friends gazed in aw around the room. Emma was the first to snap out of it. It was a weird feeling she had. It was like she was so distracted by the room that her mind became fogy with feelings of confusion on one side and fighting to keep in the state of mind to help Shalimar.  
  
"Come on Shal, look at me. Concentrate."  
  
Shalimar didn't move. She didn't even seem to notice that Emma was in the room, let alone talking to her. With her conscience nagging at her in the corner of the mind, she decided to hit Shalimar with a mental blast. Not a strong one. Just to distract her.  
  
But just as the beautiful coloured ball hit Shalimar, she fell to the ground. Emma ran to her side to see if she was ok. She hadn't hit her that hard. Any mutant would have been able to stay conscious if she hit them with such a small burst of energy, especially a strong feral like Shalimar. But contrary to her believe Shalimar was out cold. She wouldn't be waking up for a couple of hours so Emma decided to leave and go back after Shal wake up.  
  
Emma pulled out of her connection to Shalimar and looked around the room at the three worried faces looking back at her.  
  
"Is she okay? What happened? Why are you back so soon?" Jesse attacked Emma with questions as soon as he was sure that she was out.  
  
She answered each one carefully and with as much detail as possible. After she finished everyone turned to Adam for an explanation.  
  
"It sounds like Shal is just dreaming." He started to explain. "But I think that it's more then that. I think that Ashlock's has put her into a world where she has no control. He has somehow created a place where he can do what ever he wants and now he's got Shalimar there. We have to get her out."  
  
"How would that work? What did he use? And if he had the power before then why didn't he use it then?" Jesse was still attacking anyone with questions.  
  
Everyone could tell that he was worried about her. But it was more brotherly then anything. Shalimar and him had been the two first members of Mutant X so had known each other the longest. The whole team was like a family and couldn't ever be anything more.  
  
"Maybe his mutant powers have developed more with out harming him but I don't see how that could have happened." Emma spoke again.  
  
"Well whatever it is we better find out. Jesse, can you search the wed for recent sales of any electronic devices that my come close to what could do this and try to fine any locations of the Strand that could h help us fine Ashlock."  
  
"Sure" Jesse gave a small nod and headed towards the computers  
  
"Emma," Adam went on turning to her. "I want you to take it easy for a few hours." Emma was reluctant but went along with what he said after some thought.  
  
Adam turned to Brennan. He had been leaning against a wall.  
  
"Brennan, can you work with Jesse." Brennan nodded and Adam went on.  
  
"And I'll be contacting some people that I know who may be able to help." 


	4. Chapter 4

Even though she tried to sleep, Emma couldn't. Every time she closed her eyes she just saw Shalimar transfixed by the room she was in. It was so hard to see her like that. She was usually the strong one. She would never have let her self drift off like that in real life. After half an hour of tossing and turning she decided she would be more useful if she were helping so she went to find Jesse and Brennan.  
  
When Emma walked into the room they were both engulfed by the research they were doing.  
  
"Anything I can do to help?" she asked when Jesse looked up to see who it was.  
  
He was about to answer but was interrupted by Brennan.  
  
"Nope." He said plainly, "we just got a lead. Jess, go start the helix, we're taking a little trip."  
  
!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!* !*!*!*!*!*  
  
Emma had pleaded to go but Adam insisted that she stayed at head quarters. (She had been thoroughly "peed" about that.)  
  
Once Jesse had landed the helix Brennan and him put it stealth mode and they went for a bit of a trek. They had to go through a forest to find the opening to The Strand's new hide out. They knew what direction to go in but not the exact location. That was why Emma was to stay behind: to get a feed from a satellite that used ground-penetrating radar, which found any discrepancies in densities of the ground it penetrates.  
  
Once they had been walking for almost 2 hours, Emma's voice popped up on the comm.  
  
"Ok, if you go 10 feet to your left the entrance should be right in front of you." She directed.  
  
"OK. I see it. Should we go in or mark it and come back later?" Jesse acknowledged.  
  
Emma knew that she should tell them to wait so her and Adam could go with them but she was desperate for any knowledge that could help Shalimar so instead she told them to go with out her back up.  
  
As Jesse and Brennan descended the staircase they were surprised to see that they met none of the usual groupies that were always around the hide out. The inside was no different then what they ad expected. With the musty glow of the candles to the smell of various perfumes had mixed with an earthy aroma coming from the ground around them.  
  
At the bottom of the tunnel they reached a small room with other tunnels heading off in different directions. It was an easy place to get lost in (good thing they had Emma).  
  
"Em, which way do we go?" Brennan asked.  
  
Emma was about to answer when Jesse turned to his left and started running.  
  
"This way! What we need is down here I can feel it." He shouted back to Brennan.  
  
"Jesse wait!" he called back but it was to late. Jesse was already half way down the grungy tunnel was wasn't listening to anything that Brennan had to say.  
  
"Emma, is he heading the right way?" he called through the COM as he started chasing after Jesse.  
  
"Ya he is. I don't know how he's right. About 200 meters down that way." Emma told him is a surprised voice. Brennan even thought he heard a hint of jealousy in her voice. She was the empathy after all and wouldn't be actually helping very unless they needed her at the computers so if Jesse could navigate around the tunnels she was left to stand around and wait.  
  
Jesse was sprinting as fast as he ever had. He just kept pushing. He needed to go faster. He heard Brennan call after him but it didn't really register in his mind. All of a sudden he stopped and stared at a wall. For some reason he was drawn to it. He didn't want to look away from it; every thing around him sort of slipped away. The only thing that he saw was that wall and it's intricate detailing.  
  
He heard his name being called and was trying to rip his mind away from what he was concentrating on but t wasn't working. He started to panic when a hand on his back pulled him out of it.  
  
"Hey, Jesse, come on what are you doing? We need to help Shal. Not stare at some dumb wall.  
  
Jesse blinked a few times and turned at face Brennan.  
  
"We have to get in there. There's something in there. I need to, I need to, I need to." he trailed off.  
  
"OK, OK we'll go, just calm down. We'll get in there. Hey, Jesse! Jesse? Look at me come on man. We're going back to base." Brennan was starting to get worried. Jesse couldn't concentrate on any thing and he was panicking.  
  
"No, we have to go in there. We have to." He just kept repeating the same words. "We'll come back, it's OK. We'll come back" Brennan said as he grabbed Jesse's arm and pulled him away from the wall, back up the tunnel and to the Helix. Jesse was so out of it that Brennan had to fly the helix home by him self while Jesse just kept repeating "Shal, I, concentrate, it's beautiful, please, we have to, Shal where are you, please we have to, I need to go" under his breath  
  
When they got back the HQ Emma Came running in. She saw Brennan dragging Jesse by his arm over to the med bay.  
  
"What happened? What's wrong with Jesse?'  
  
"I don't know. After we talked the went running and the he stopped and stood in front of a wall and didn't move and, I don't know, something happened but there's something wrong with him."  
  
Emma was amazed. Jesse was acting sort of like how Shalimar was acting. She walked up to him and put her hand on his temple. She told him to concentrate on her, nothing else, only her. Suddenly Jesse snapped out of hat ever he was in and took a deep breath.  
  
"Wow, what a head ache." He said  
  
"Come here, I want to check you out. Mack sure that there was no damage done." Emma said just before she called Adam into the room and while Adam made sure Jesse was ok the three informed Adam what happened about what happened. 


End file.
